Stunning Photos of The World’s Oldest Trees Illuminated By Starlight

For San Francisco-based Beth Moon, ancient trees are the best subject, especially when they are illuminated by cosmic rays. Moon has spent 14 years of her life, taking pictures of the world’s oldest trees. However, when she photographed them at night, she was more captivated by the results.

Her photos mostly feature quiver and baobab trees in Bostwana, South Africa, and Namibia.

“Our relationship to the wild has played an important role in my work. This series was inspired by two fascinating, scientific studies that connect tree growth with celestial movement and astral cycles,” she explained on her website.

While the first study concluded that cosmic radiation impacts tree growth even more than annual temperature or rainfall, the second one found out that tree buds alter shape and size directly correlating to the planets and moon.

During the day, a guide led moon to every location. At night, she returned to the marked spot. She then took photos with 30 second exposure times to avoid capturing star movement. Each photo she took was then named after the constellations in the background.